Manufacturers need proper automation, machines, and software to manufacture products faster and keep up with evolving customer demands. As production capacity increases, these businesses must boost their quality control capacity while reducing quality costs. 

It’s difficult to find a business or industry that isn’t driven by software applications. From phones and laptops to manufacturing systems to validated applications for regulated industries, software drives many of our business processes. 

There is a lot of attention given to the growth of automation, specifically to robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), and its potential impact on the economy and the work force, current and future.

Many of you have probably recognized that I am a fan of the television show The West Wing. Some of you will know the name and may have even watched the show, others will have no idea what I am talking about.

Color is a critical part of any product. It’s the first thing your customer sees. Whether you are manufacturing components for assembly or finished assembled goods, the color has to be right every time or you risk scrapping, reworking, or discounting the product. This impacts your bottom line.

In aerospace, a defect, mismeasurement, or slight error can be the difference between a successful launch and mission failure. It’s because of this that aerospace companies have the most stringent requirements for quality and dimensional accuracy.

Today, there are myriad ways to breathe new life into existing gages without the need to invest in new gaging. Users are familiar with the gages they have. They may be under quality control cycles, are easy to use, provide good results, and have proven themselves over time.

How do you select the right shop-floor CMM for your production line? Making an informed decision means understanding application needs, what solutions can meet your needs and how to “future proof” your selection.

For their dedication to quality, Larsen Manufacturing (Mundelein, IL) has earned our 2022 Quality Plant of the Year award.

The discipline of machine vision encompasses imaging technologies and methods to perform automatic inspection and analysis in various applications, such as verification, measurement, and process control.